The 2009 Blues Cup Tournament Rules are published here as well as in the 2009 Tournament Program.

If you would like to download your own copy of the Tournament Rules they are available in Adobe Acrobat format. Just click the link below.

TOURNAMENT
RULES
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2009 Blues Cup Tournament Rules

Registration and Credentials

REGISTRATION: Teams must check in at the MANDATORY REGISTRATION. Mandatory Registration is on Friday evening, September 4, from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., or Saturday morning, September 5, from 7 am to 9 am at Rancho Capistrano Fields, San Juan Capistrano, by prior appointment only. Failure to check in will result in automatic disqualification (without a refund of the fee) from the Tournament. At the discretion of the Tournament Director, the team may be allowed to compete as a "Guest team." (See Guest Team rule.) Games not played will be classified as "Forfeits and Byes."

CREDENTIALS: At the Mandatory Registration, teams must provide the required credentials. All U.S. teams must provide laminated USYSA Player I.D. Cards with photographs, and signed Medical Release Forms. USYSA Teams from outside CYSA-South must also provide approved Travel Papers, which must include a roster listing all players authorized to travel by that Teams State Association. All Travel Papers must be submitted to the Tournament Director prior to check-in. Any player not listed on the Travel Papers, including any amendments, properly executed by that teams State Association will not be allowed to play in the tournament. Proper Player Loan Forms will be required at Registration along with other required credentials, as required by the team’s State Association. All teams must provide the USYSA Player I.D. Cards from the State Association listed on the Application. The Blues Cup will also accept Teams registering under the US Club Soccer banner. Player I.D. Cards from associations other than US Youth Soccer or US Club Soccer will not be accepted.

ROSTERS: Teams may register a maximum of eighteen (18) players (14 for Under-10, Under-9, and Under-8). A team may use up to five (5) guest players but any team utilizing guest players is still limited to the eighteen player (14 for Under-10, Under-9, and Under-8) maximum.

Rules of Play

FIFA Laws of the Game will apply as modified by USYSA and CYSA-South as described herein.

Duration of Games & Overtimes, By Halves, and Ball Size are as follows:

Division Prelim* & Quarter-Finals Semi-Finals & Finals Overtime** Ball Size
U19 30 Minutes 35 Minutes 10 Minutes 5
U17 30 Minutes 35 Minutes 10 Minutes 5
U16 30 Minutes 35 Minutes 10 Minutes 5
U15 30 Minutes 35 Minutes 10 Minutes 5
U14 30 Minutes 35 Minutes 10 Minutes 5
U13 25 Minutes 35 Minutes 7 Minutes 5
U12 25 Minutes 30 Minutes 5 Minutes 4
U11 25 Minutes 30 Minutes 5 Minutes 4
U10 25 Minutes 25 Minutes 5 Minutes 4
U9 25 Minutes 25 Minutes 5 Minutes 4
U9B (U8) 25 Minutes 25 Minutes 5 Minutes 4

*All Preliminary Games will be called not less than five (5) minutes prior to the scheduled start of the next game regardless of the amount of time played in each half up to that point. A game is "complete" upon completion of one half of play regardless of the circumstances of termination during the second half with final results based on the score at the time the game is called. Preliminary games can end in a tie.

Quarter-Final, Semi-Final, and Final games will include added time as determined by the referee.

Quarter-Final games ending in a tie after regulation will proceed immediately to FIFA Penalty Kicks to determine who advances to Semi-Finals.

** Semi-Final and Final games tied after regulation will play two equal overtime halves. If a tie still exists after overtime halves in Final games, FIFA Penalty Kicks will determine who advances or is awarded the trophy. Penalty Kicks will immediately follow the game.

HALF TIME: Half Time will be exactly five minutes.

GAME CHECK-IN CONDUCT: At least fifteen minutes prior to the start of each scheduled game, a team representative must present to the Field Marshall the team’s player cards and game card so the team may be checked in to play and the game started as scheduled. The Field Marshall will retain the game card and the team’s player cards until completion of the game. Each team manager or representative will be required to initial the game card area for that game before the player cards will be returned. A team who fails to properly check in with the Field Marshall will forfeit that game.

PLAYERS’ EQUIPMENT: It will be at the Referee’s discretion to determine the safety and suitability of player equipment including the wearing of a hard brace. Hard casts are not allowed per CYSA-South rules. Shin guards are mandatory for all players.

SUBSTITUTIONS: Free substitution will be allowed in all age groups. However, teams may substitute only with the referee's permission under FIFA laws.

COACHING: All Coaches have total responsibility for the conduct of their players, substitutes, friends and spectators at all times. Coaching from the sidelines (giving direction to one’s own team on points of strategy and position) is permitted, provided:

CAUTIONS AND EJECTIONS: A player or coach receiving two cautions (yellow cards) in a single game is considered to have been given an Ejection (red card) for the purposes of awarding points for the Tournament competition. A player who has been ejected (sent off), will not be replaced. A player or coach who has been ejected will not return for that game and will not be allowed to participate in the next scheduled game. A player or coach who is ejected for violent conduct or serious foul play will not be allowed to participate in the next TWO scheduled games. Any player or coach who assaults a referee will be expelled from the Tournament. For the purpose of this Tournament a coach can be carded. A team will be disqualified from the Tournament if any player or coach fails to comply with the provisions of this section.

SUSPENDED AND TERMINATED GAMES: If in the opinion of tournament officials a game must be suspended (for reason); the game may be resumed, but is subject to being ended not less than five (5) minutes prior to the scheduled start of the next game. If in the opinion of tournament officials, a game must be terminated for misconduct of players, bench coaches, or spectators, the offending team could be suspended from further play and forfeits that game and all remaining games. All previous points earned remain as played. Additionally, the home league and State Association will be contacted as appropriate.

If a game is terminated due to problems associated with the fields, including lighting for a night game, or due to the serious injury of a player (see the next section entitled "INJURY") the resumption of play for that game will be at the discretion of the tournament officials. Tournament officials may at their option conclude the game, require completion of the game or utilize penalty kicks to determine the winner of the game depending upon the circumstance and taking into account the potential effect of the game results on the standings of the teams.

INJURY: Delays of the game will only be allowed for an injury requiring professional medical attention and the inability to remove the injured player from the field until and while the medical attention is being provided to the player. The delay will result in appropriate time being added to the full game time, based on the judgment of the referee. Otherwise, each game will be played with a running clock and no suspension of the clock time. However, all preliminary games will be terminated not less than five (5) minutes prior to the scheduled start of the next game. The failure to complete any game due to a serious injury requiring suspension of the game play shall be controlled by the preceding section,"SUSPENDED AND TERMINATED GAMES."

Tournament Competition

DETERMINING WINNERS: Teams will be awarded points on the following basis:

    Six (6) points for each Win
    Three (3) points for each Tie
    Zero (0) points for each Loss
    One (1) point for each goal scored up to a maximum of three (3) per game.
    One (1) point for each shutout
    MINUS ONE (-1) FOR EACH PLAYER OR COACH EJECTED
    A 0-0 tie will be scored as 4 points for each team (3 for tie, 1 for shutout)

In the event of a tie in points at the end of bracket play, the teams to advance will be determined as follows:

  1. The winner in head to head competition.
  2. Fewest goals against.
  3. Most goals for.
  4. Most total wins.
  5. Most shut outs
  6. If a tie still exists after steps 1 through 5, FIFA Penalty Kicks will be taken fifteen (15) minutes prior to the scheduled start of the appropriate Quarterfinal or Semifinal game.
  7. If a three-way tie exists within a bracket after steps 1 through 5, a three-way coin flip will be conducted. The teams that tie in the coin flip will compete in FIFA Penalty Kicks to eliminate one team prior to proceeding to FIFA Penalty Kicks with the third team. The coin flip and time of the FIFA Penalty Kicks will be determined at the fields.

If ties exist in the determination of a wild card team, criteria 2 through 7 will be applied.

HOME TEAM: The Home Team will be the team which appears first on the game schedule. The Home Team will supply the game ball, unless supplied by the Tournament. The game ball will be subject to Referee approval. The Home Team will be required to switch to alternate jerseys to accommodate a color conflict as declared by the referee. If the Home Team cannot supply alternate jerseys, the Home Team will forfeit the game. The Home Team will have the selection of the side of the field they wish to defend and the visiting team will start with the kick off. No two teams will play from the same side of the field, with the Home Team selecting the side from which they will play.

FORFEITS AND BYES: All teams who forfeit will have the game(s) scored a 0-1 loss. The winner will be awarded eight tournament points (six for the win, one for a goal, and one for a shutout). Teams failing to report ready to play within five minutes of the scheduled kick off time will forfeit. Home Teams unable to supply alternate jerseys, or teams failing to check in at the Mandatory Registration or for taking actions which cause a game to be terminated will forfeit. Byes will be scored and tournament points awarded the same as a forfeit.

PROTESTS: NO PROTESTS WILL BE ALLOWED.

DISPUTES: Game conduct is under the jurisdiction of the referee and the tournament will not overrule a referee’s decision.

GUEST TEAMS: The Tournament may accept a team as a "Guest Team" in order to fill a late vacancy in a Division. Guest Teams cannot advance out of Bracket. Guest Team game results are predetermined to be a 1-0 against the Guest team. The opposing team is awarded eight points.

INCLEMENT WEATHER OR ACT OF GOD: In the event of inclement weather, or act of god, once the games have begun, winners will be decided based on points earned up to that point, with any tie breakers being determined using the protocol outlined above in numbered paragraphs 6 and 7 of the section entitled, "DETERMINING WINNERS".

In case of cancellation due to inclement weather, the "Tournament Committee" retains the right to keep up to one-third (1/3) of the team fee to cover expenses. There will be no make-up games due to inclement weather.

Tournament Play

EIGHT TEAM DIVISION will consist of two (2) Brackets of our (4) teams. Each team will play the others within its Bracket for a total of three (3) preliminary games. The winner of Bracket A will play the second place team of Bracket B in the Semi-Final Game 1, and the winner of Bracket B will play the second team of Bracket A in Semi-Final Game 2. The Semi-Final winners will meet for the Championship.

TWELVE TEAM DIVISION will consist of three (3) Brackets of four (4) teams. Each team will play the others within its Bracket for a total of three (3) preliminary games. The winner of Bracket A will play the Wildcard Team in semi-final Game 1, and the winners of Brackets B and C will play in a Semi-Final Game 2. The Wildcard Team will be the second place team with the most points or tiebreakers. If the Wildcard Team comes from Bracket A, then the Winner of A will play Winner B, and the Winner C will play the Wildcard. The Semi-Final winners will meet for the Championship.

SIXTEEN TEAM DIVISION will consist of four (4) Brackets of four (4) teams. Each team will play the others within its Bracket for a total of three (3) preliminary games. The winner of Bracket A will play the 2nd place team of Bracket B in Quarter-Final Game 1. The winner of Bracket B will play the 2nd place team from Bracket A in Quarter-Final Game 2. The winner of Bracket C will play the 2nd place team from Bracket D in Quarter-Final Game 3. The winner of Bracket D will play the 2nd place team from Bracket C in Quarter-Final Game 4. The winner of Quarter-Final Game 1 will play the winner of Quarter-Final Game 3 in Semi-Final Game 1. The winner of Quarter-Final Game 2 will play the winner of Quarter-Final Game 4 in Semi-final Game 2. The Semi-Final winners will meet for the Championship.